3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Acquired by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 15.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 314,194 shares of the conglomerate's stock after acquiring an additional 42,385 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned approximately 0.06% of 3M worth $40,559,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in 3M in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in 3M during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in 3M during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in 3M by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 237,297 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 19,552 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ORG Partners LLC raised its position in shares of 3M by 44.1% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 320 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on MMM. Citigroup lifted their price target on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "underperform" rating and issued a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a report on Saturday, March 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of 3M from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $149.13.

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Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,309 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.95, for a total transaction of $346,234.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,417 shares in the company, valued at $662,329.15. This trade represents a 34.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of 3M stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,024 shares of the company's stock, valued at $750,736.32. The trade was a 55.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

3M Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE MMM traded up $0.17 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $147.84. 2,812,625 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,098,630. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $149.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $138.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $79.73 billion, a PE ratio of 19.58, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. 3M has a 12-month low of $89.54 and a 12-month high of $156.35.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. 3M's revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.42 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.98%. This is an increase from 3M's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M's payout ratio is currently 38.68%.

About 3M

3M Company provides diversified technology services in the United States and internationally. The company's Safety and Industrial segment offers industrial abrasives and finishing for metalworking applications; autobody repair solutions; closure systems for personal hygiene products, masking, and packaging materials; electrical products and materials for construction and maintenance, power distribution, and electrical original equipment manufacturers; structural adhesives and tapes; respiratory, hearing, eye, and fall protection solutions; and natural and color-coated mineral granules for shingles.